The University of Missouri-Columbia (MU) will form the International Center for Indigenous Phytotherapy Studies (TICIPS) in collaboration with the University of Western Cape, South Africa (UWC) and the Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis (MOBOT). MU has outstanding research and educational programs in health care quality improvement and biomedical sciences, including the MU Center for Phytonutrient and Phytochemical Studies. UWC has outstanding CAM research and educational programs, especially in medicinal plants, and extensive ties with South Africans that use traditional healers, and with the South African government. MOBOT is the North American center for research of African flora. Funds are sought for a planning effort, building upon a 17-year relationship between MU and UWC, to define the mission, vision and strategic plan for TICIPS; to develop the administrative infrastructure to support collaborative research studies and joint educational activities; and to assess resources and needs required for the establishment of a comprehensive international center for research on complementary and alternative medicine. During Phase I, sound administrative structures and policies will be established to ensure compliance with both countries' regulations on the conduct of research with human subjects and animal subjects, financial disclosure, conflict of interest and intellectual property rights. The pilots will serve to demonstrate the capabilities of the partners and to initiate research and training efforts that fulfill the goals of NCCAM. Pilot 1 will open a Phase I clinical trial on Sutherlandia frutscens, an herbal used to deter wasting in AIDS patients. Pilot 2 will study Tulbaghia violacea as an indigenous phytotherapy for candidiasis. Pilot 3 will evaluate Hypoxis hemerocallidea phytotherapies for prostate hyperplasia and cancer. Planning and execution of these projects and the development of an administrative core will lay the foundation for an International Center for Research and Complementary and Alternative Medicine.